Exercise and Weight Loss: How Important is Exercise? Do you Need Extra Calories?            

When it comes to exercise and weight loss, exercise is not nearly as important as a change in diet and patterns of eating. While exercise does burn calories, most people will not see significant weight loss if they do not change their eating habits. In many cases, people will start exercising and then feel that they can have earned the ability to eat more as a reward. As a result, they often eat more calories than they burned during their workout. When I see a new patient who is not eating right nor exercising, I encourage them to start first with a diet adjustment. The process often takes planning and getting used to, especially since many people are not used to eating only three meals and two snacks per day. Once they are comfortable with the meal plan, I recommend that exercise be added. The simple fact is that exercise is very important for the long term maintenance of weight loss.

If you are currently exercising, and have found a routine that works well with your life, my recommendation is to continue your routine as you begin dieting. The protein and calories provided by BistroMD meals are adequate for most people, unless you are engaging in very heavy exercise, such as spinning for more than one hour, outdoor cycling for more than two hours, or long distance running. With this kind of exercise, the addition of some quality protein and carbohydrate-containing snacks -- like nonfat Greek yogurt, reduced fat cheese, or fruit -- should be added.

Adding exercise will likely speed up your rate of weight loss; however, it is important to ensure that all meals and snacks are eaten to avoid the loss of lean muscle tissue.